Phở or pho[2] (UK: /fɜː/, US: /fʌ, foʊ/, Canada:/fɒ/;[3]Vietnamese: [fəː˧˩˧] (listen)) is a Vietnamesesoup consisting of broth, rice noodles called bánh phở, a few herbs, and meat, primarily made with either beef (phở bò) or chicken (phở gà).[4][5] Pho is a popular street food in Vietnam[6] and the specialty of a number of restaurant chains around the world. Pho originated in the early 20th century in northern Vietnam, and was popularized throughout the rest of the world by refugees after the Vietnam War. Because pho's origins are poorly documented,[7][8] there is significant disagreement over the cultural influences that led to its development in Vietnam, as well as the etymology of the word itself.[9] The Hanoi and Saigon styles of pho differ by noodle width, sweetness of broth, and choice of herbs. A related noodle soup, bún bò Huế, which is a spicy beef noodle soup, is associated with Huế in central Vietnam.

History

Pho likely evolved from similar dishes; for example, villagers in Vân Cù say they ate pho long before the French colonial period.[10] The modern form of the dish emerged between 1900 and 1907 in northern Vietnam,[7][1] southeast of Hanoi in Nam Định Province, then a substantial textile market. The traditional home of pho is reputed to be the villages of Vân Cù and Dao Cù (or Giao Cù) in Đông Xuân commune, Nam Trực District, Nam Định Province.[10][11]

Cultural historian and researcher Trịnh Quang Dũng believes that the popularization and origins of the modern pho stemmed from the intersection of several historical and cultural factors in the early 20th century.[12] These include the higher availability of beef due to French demand, which in turn produced beef bones that were purchased by Chinese workers to make into a dish similar to pho called ngưu nhục phấn.[12][13] The demand for this dish was initially the greatest with workers sourced from the provinces of Yunnan and Guangdong, who found affinity to the dish due to its similarities to that of their homeland, which eventually popularized and familiarized this dish with the general population.[13]

Pho was originally sold at dawn and dusk by roaming street vendors, who shouldered mobile kitchens on carrying poles (gánh phở).[14] From the pole hung two wooden cabinets, one housing a cauldron over a wood fire, the other storing noodles, spices, cookware, and space to prepare a bowl of pho. The heavy gánh was always shouldered by men.[15] They kept their heads warm with distinctive, disheveled felt hats called mũ phở.[16]

Hanoi's first two fixed pho stands were a Vietnamese-owned Cát Tường on Cầu Gỗ Street and a Chinese-owned stand in front of Bờ Hồ tram stop. They were joined in 1918 by two more on Quạt Row and Đồng Row.[17] Around 1925, a Vân Cù villager named Vạn opened the first "Nam Định style" pho stand in Hanoi.[18]Gánh phở declined in number around 1936–1946 in favor of stationary eateries.[16]

Meanwhile, in North Vietnam, private pho restaurants were nationalized (mậu dịch quốc doanh)[22] and began serving pho noodles made from old rice. Street vendors were forced to use noodles made of imported potato flour.[23][24] Officially banned as capitalism, these vendors prized portability, carrying their wares on gánh and setting out plastic stools for customers.[25]

During the so-called "subsidy period" following the Vietnam War, state-owned pho eateries served a meatless variety of the dish known as "pilotless pho" (phở không người lái),[26] in reference to the U.S. Air Force's unmanned reconnaissance drones. The broth consisted of boiled water with MSG added for taste, as there were often shortages on various foodstuffs like meat and rice during that period.[27] Bread or cold rice was often served as a side dish, leading to the present-day practice of dipping quẩy in pho.[28]

Pho eateries were privatized as part of Đổi Mới. However, many street vendors must still maintain a light footprint to evade police enforcing the street tidiness rules that replaced the ban on private ownership.[25]

In the United States, pho began to enter the mainstream during the 1990s, as relations between the U.S. and Vietnam improved.[30] At that time Vietnamese restaurants began opening quickly in Texas and California, spreading rapidly along the Gulf and West Coasts, as well as the East Coast and the rest of the country. During the 2000s, pho restaurants in the United States generated US$500 million in annual revenue, according to an unofficial estimate.[32] Pho can now be found in cafeterias at many college and corporate campuses, especially on the West Coast.[30]

The word "pho" was added to the Shorter Oxford English Dictionary in 2007.[33] Pho is listed at number 28 on "World's 50 most delicious foods" compiled by CNN Go in 2011.[34] The Vietnamese Embassy in Mexico celebrated Pho Day on April 3, 2016, with Osaka Prefecture holding a similar commemoration the following day.[35] Pho has been adopted by other Southeast Asian cuisines, including Hmong cuisine.[5] It sometimes appears as "Phô" on menus in Australia.

Etymology and origins

Reviews of 19th and 20th century Indochinese literature have found that pho entered the mainstream sometime in the 1910s. Phạm Đình Hổ's 1827 Hán-Nôm dictionary Nhật dụng thường đàm includes an entry for rice noodles (traditional Chinese: 玉酥餅; ; Vietnamese: ngọc tô bính) with the definition 羅𩛄普𤙭 (Vietnamese: là bánh phở bò; "is beef pho noodle"), borrowing a character ordinarily pronounced "phổ" or "phơ" to refer to pho.[37] Georges Dumoutier's extensive 1907 account of Vietnamese cuisine omits any mention of pho,[9] while Nguyễn Công Hoan recalls its sale by street vendors in 1913.[38] A 1931 dictionary is the first to define phở as a soup: "from the word phấn. A dish consisting of small slices of rice cake boiled with beef."[9][16][39]

Possibly the earliest English-language reference to pho was in the book Recipes of All Nations, edited by Countess Morphy in 1935: In the book, pho is described as "an Annamese soup held in high esteem ... made with beef, a veal bone, onions, a bayleaf, salt, and pepper, and a small teaspoon of nuoc-mam."[40]

There are two prevailing theories on the origin of the word phở and, by extension, the dish itself. As author Nguyễn Dư notes, both questions are significant to Vietnamese identity.[14]

From French

French pot-au-feu

French settlers commonly ate beef, whereas Vietnamese traditionally ate pork and chicken and used cattle as beasts of burden.[22][41] Gustave Hue (1937) equates cháo phở to the French beef stew pot-au-feu (literally, "pot on the fire").[9] Accordingly, Western sources generally maintain that phở is derived from pot-au-feu in both name and substance.[3][9][42] However, several scholars dispute this etymology on the basis of the stark differences between the two dishes.[9][18][43] Ironically, pho in French has long been pronounced [fo] rather than [fø]: in Jean Tardieu's Lettre de Hanoï à Roger Martin Du Gard (1928), a soup vendor cries "Pho-ô!" in the street.[24]

Many Hanoians explain that the word phở derives from French soldiers' ordering "feu" (fire) from gánh phở, referring to both the steam rising from a bowl of pho and the wood fire seen glowing from a gánh phở in the evening.[16]

Food historian Erica J. Peters argues that the French have embraced pho in a way that overlooks its origins as a local improvisation, reinforcing "an idea that the French brought modern ingenuity to a traditionalist Vietnam".[24]

It is also sometimes assumed that the names of the varieties of pho, specifically phở bò (beef) and phở gà (chicken), are also of French or even Latin origin, as Latin bos and gallus mean "cattle" and "chicken", respectively. But this is an apparent coincidence, as bò and gà are native Vietnamese words.

From Cantonese

Hue and Eugèn Gouin (1957) both define phở by itself as an abbreviation of lục phở. Elucidating on the 1931 dictionary, Gouin and Lê Ngọc Trụ (1970) both give lục phở as a corruption of ngưu nhục phấn (Chinese: 牛肉粉; Cantonese Yale: ngau4 yuk6 fan2; "cow meat noodles"), which was commonly sold by Chinese immigrants in Hanoi.[9] ([ɲ] is an allophone of /l/ in some northern dialects of Vietnamese.)

Some scholars argue that pho (the dish) evolved from xáo trâu, a Vietnamese dish common in Hanoi at the turn of the century. Originally eaten by commoners near the Red River, it consisted of stir-fried strips of water buffalo meat served in broth atop rice vermicelli.[44] Around 1908–1909, the shipping industry brought an influx of laborers. Vietnamese and Chinese cooks set up gánh to serve them xáo trâu but later switched to inexpensive scraps of beef[9][10] set aside by butchers who sold to the French.[45] Chinese vendors advertised this xáo bò by crying out, "Beef and noodles!" (Cantonese Yale: ngàuh yuhk fán; Vietnamese: ngưu nhục phấn).[18] Eventually the street cry became "Meat and noodles!" (Chinese: 肉粉; Cantonese Yale: yuhk fán; Vietnamese: nhục phấn), with the last syllable elongated.[11][16] Nguyễn Ngọc Bích suggests that the final "n" was eventually dropped because of the similar-sounding phẩn (traditional Chinese: 糞; simplified Chinese: 粪; "excrement").[8][46] The French author Jean Marquet refers to the dish as "Yoc feu!" in his 1919 novel Du village-à-la cité.[45] This is likely what the Vietnamese poet Tản Đà calls "nhục-phở" in "Đánh bạc" ("Gambling"), written around 1915–1917.[14][43]

Ingredients and preparation

Pho is served in a bowl with a specific cut of flat rice noodles in clear beef broth, with thin cuts of beef (steak, fatty flank, lean flank, brisket). Variations feature slow-cooked tendon, tripe, or meatballs in southern Vietnam. Chicken pho is made using the same spices as beef, but the broth is made using only chicken bones and meat, as well as some internal organs of the chicken, such as the heart, the undeveloped eggs and the gizzard.[47][48]

Noodles

Bags of bánh phở tươi at an American grocery store

The medium-width dried rice noodle that is usually used is called bánh phở, but some versions may be made with fresh rice noodles called bánh phở tươi in Vietnamese or kuay tiao.[49][50] These noodles are labeled on packaging as bánh phở tươi (fresh pho noodles) in Vietnamese, 新鲜潮洲粿條 (fresh Chaozhoukuy teav) in Chinese, 월남쌀국수 (Vietnamese rice noodle) in Korean, and ก๋วยเตี๋ยวเส้นเล็ก (thin kuy teav) in Thai.[51]

Broth

The broth for beef pho is generally made by simmering beef bones, oxtails, flank steak, charred onion, charred ginger and spices. For a more intense flavor, the bones may still have beef on them. Chicken bones also work and produce a similar broth. Seasonings can include Saigon cinnamon or other kinds of cinnamon as alternatives (may use usually in stick form, sometimes in powder form in pho restaurant franchises overseas), star anise, roasted ginger, roasted onion, black cardamom, coriander seed, fennel seed, and clove.[52] The broth takes several hours to make.[48] For chicken pho, only the meat and bones of the chicken are used in place of beef and beef bone. The remaining spices remain the same, but the charred ginger can be omitted, since its function in beef pho is to subdue the quite strong smell of beef.

A typical pho spice packet, sold at many Asian food markets, containing a soaking bag plus various necessary dry spices. The exact amount differs with each bag.

The spices, often wrapped in cheesecloth or a soaking bag to prevent them from floating all over the pot, usually contain cloves, star anise, coriander seed, fennel, cinnamon, black cardamom, ginger, and onion.

Careful cooks often roast ginger and onion over an open fire for about a minute before adding them to the stock, to bring out their full flavor. They also skim off all the impurities that float to the top while cooking; this is the key to a clear broth. Nước mắm (fish sauce) is added toward the end.

Several ingredients not generally served with pho may be ordered by request. Extra-fatty broth (nước béo) can be ordered and comes with scallions to sweeten it. A popular side dish ordered upon request is hành dấm, or vinegared white onions.

Regional variants

Chicken pho at a typical street stall in Hanoi – note the lack of side garnishes, typical of northern Vietnamese-style cooking

The several regional variants of pho in Vietnam, particularly divided between "northern pho" (phở bắc) and "southern pho" or "Saigon pho" (phở Sài Gòn). Northern pho tends to use somewhat wider noodles and much more green onion, and garnishes offered generally include only vinegar, fish sauce and chili sauce. On the other hand, southern Vietnamese pho broth is slightly sweeter and has bean sprouts and a greater variety of fresh herbs. Pho may be served with either pho noodles or kuy teav noodles (hủ tiếu).[54] The variations in meat, broth, and additional garnishes such as lime, bean sprouts, ngò gai (Eryngium foetidum), húng quế (Thai/Asian basil), and tương đen (bean sauce/hoisin sauce), tương ớt (hot chili sauce, e.g., Sriracha sauce) appear to be innovations made by or introduced to the South.[7]

International variants include pho made using tofu and vegetable broth for vegetarians (phở chay), and a larger variety of vegetables, such as carrots and broccoli.

Many pho restaurants in the United States offer oversized helpings with names such as "train pho" (phở xe lửa), "airplane pho" (phở tàu bay), or "California pho" (phở Ca Li).[14][16][28] Some restaurants offer a pho eating challenge, with prizes for finishing as much as 10 pounds (4.5 kg) of pho in one sitting.[55] In some parts of the United States, fresh bánh phở is not widely available. Dried noodles called bánh phở khô are often used instead. Some restaurants may serve bánh phở tươi (fresh pho noodles) upon request.

Tables at pho restaurants abroad are set with a variety of condiments, including Sriracha sauce, and eating utensils.

Notable restaurants

Before 1975, famous pho shops in Saigon included Phở Công Lý, Phở Tàu Bay, Phở Tàu Thủy, and Phở Bà Dậu. Pasteur Street (phố phở Pasteur) was a street famous for its beef pho, while Hien Vuong Street (phố phở Hiền Vương) was known for its chicken pho.[56] At Phở Bình, American soldiers dined as Việt Cộng agents planned the Tết Offensive just upstairs.[57][58] Nowadays in Ho Chi Minh City, well known restaurants include: Phở Hòa Pasteur[59] and Phở 2000, which U.S. President Bill Clinton visited in 2000.[30][41]

"pho (British & World English)". Oxford Dictionaries. Oxford University Press. Retrieved 23 August 2013. a type of Vietnamese soup, typically made from beef stock and spices to which noodles and thinly sliced beef or chicken are added. Origin: Vietnamese, perhaps from French feu (in pot-au-feu)

^Thanh Nien staff (3 February 2012). "Vietnamese street food a gourmet's delight". Thanh Nien News. Retrieved 15 October 2012. A visit to Vietnam would never be complete, Lister said, without the taste of food on the street, including phở - beef noodle soup,...

^ abGibb, Camilla (2011). The Beauty of Humanity Movement: A Novel. p. 4. The history of Vietnam lies in this bowl, for it is in Hanoi, the Vietnamese heart, that phở was born, a combination of the rice noodles that predominated after a thousand years of Chinese occupation and the taste for ...

^Xuan Phuong; Mazingarbe, Danièle (2004) [2001]. Myers, Jonathan E., ed. Ao Dai: My War, My Country, My Vietnam. Translated by Lynn M. Bensimon. Great Neck, New York: Emquad International. pp. 169–170. ISBN0-9718406-2-8. The soup that was presented to replace it was made of rotten rice noodles, a little bit of tough meat, and a tasteless broth. … As for the small street peddlers, they no longer had the right to sell pho, but instead, a vile soup in which there were noodles made of potato flour.

^Morphy, Marcelle (countess) (1935). "Dishes from many lands". Recipes of All Nations. New York: Wm. H. Wise & Co. p. 802. hdl:2027/coo.31924003591769?urlappend=;seq=816. PHO is the name of an Annamese soup held in high esteem. It is made with beef, a veal bone, onions, a bayleaf, salt, and pepper, and a small teaspoon of nuoc-man [sic], a typically Annamese condiment which is used in practically all their dishes. It is made from a kind of brine exuding from decaying fish, and in former days six years were required before it had reached full maturity. But in modern times the preparation has been put on the market, and can be made by chemical processes in a very short time.

^ abPeters, Erica J. (16 October 2011). Appetites and Aspirations in Vietnam: Food and Drink in the Long Nineteenth Century. Rowman Altamira. p. 204. ISBN0759120757. Networks of Chinese and Vietnamese who cooked or butchered meat for the French most likely diverted beef remnants to street soup vendors …. By 1919, Jean Marquet reports hearing ‘Yoc Pheu!’ called out on the streets of Hanoi by Vietnamese selling beef soup …. Du village à la cité, Marquet’s novel about Vietnamese urbanization and radicalism, …. may be the earliest use of the word in print, and the earliest effort to label phở a uniquely Vietnamese dish.